Technical Field
Aspects of the embodiments relate generally to automated specification generation. More specifically, aspects of the embodiments relate to modeling a lighting control system, generating a specification thereof, and delivering the modeled lighting control system to a user thereof.
Background Art
The specification, purchase, and installation of lighting systems in commercial and residential environments can be expensive, and can make the difference between an environment that suits its intended purpose well, or which fails miserably. That is, even if the space is designed as well as it can be, even if it has the most modern conveniences, the perfect furniture, and the most up-to-date computer network technology, and so on, if the lighting is bad, people will be miserable in it, and won't want to be there. Aside from poor HVAC conditions, nothing so frustrates occupants of a commercial or residential space as poor lighting, especially after a significant amount of money has gone into the purchase of a lighting control system. As those of skill in the art can appreciate, lighting control systems include, but are not limited to, the actual lights themselves, the manual or automated control thereof, shading (including shades or curtains), and a system that integrates control of those items, and is tied into the heating/cooling of the same space. Thus, those of skill in the art consider a properly designed lighting control system to be of paramount importance especially when considering the costs of the systems involved, and the overall importance to acceptability of the environment. Thus, the lighting control system needs to be specified, delivered, and installed properly, and be integrated with other systems of the enterprise location.
In addition, a well designed, manufactured, and installed lighting control system is paramount in supporting a life safety code compliant building. As those of skill in the art can appreciate, life safety codes are used as a source for strategies to protect people based on building construction, protection, and occupancy features that minimize the effects of fire and related hazards. As those of skill in the art can appreciate, customers of lighting control systems are very concerned with meeting energy and life safety codes as well as the environmental conditions described above.
Currently, enterprise lighting control systems are specified according to the entire building. These building-wide solutions require a custom submittal and large lighting cabinets which leads to longer startup times and long submittal process.
Additionally, devices are currently delivered with no coordination. Devices required for a certain area may arrive in multiple shipments, in shipments with devices for other areas, or in shipments earlier or later than needed. This may cause confusion to installers and misplaced items. A typical scenario can include the following: a lighting control system is specified for an enterprise that includes several floors of a building, and within each floor there are numerous rooms, of various sizes. Each of the rooms constitute a single space and a single zone, but several rooms are so large that they have two, three or even four zones (e.g., a meeting room, or dance hall). In the conventional manner of ordering lighting control systems, the specifier creates a large bill of materials that, even if automated, creates a substantially large parts list. Even if the parts list is broken into individual parts (e.g., ten of part A, 20 of part B, and so on), all of these components, whether segregated by part number or not, are delivered to one central location. Installers would then go to the central location, and pull the parts that their line and installation drawings tell them that they need, and parts that are not currently being used are cast aside, mishandled, lost, stolen, broken, damaged, and so on. Waste and delays occur, and this wastes time and direct costs of money. In the conventional manner of specifying, ordering, delivering, and installing of lighting control systems, substantial problems abound.
In certain installations, users desire a simpler process where costs can be minimized, waste can be minimized, and installation times lowered.
Thus, there is a need for an improved system and method for modeling, specifying, ordering, delivering, and installing, among other steps, a lighting control system.